I would like to recommend a book I have recently added to my collection called "Vietnam: Image of the community of 54 ethnic groups" (Vietnam News Agency) published by The Ethnic Cultures Publishing House, Hanoi 2000.
At first I wasn't sure what the book would be like as I have not seen publications from Vietnam before, but it is very presentable and packed with colour photographs of tribal people from all parts of Vietnam in traditional dress, with a basic text (in Vietnamese and English ) on each group. I first became aware of this title via Michael Howard's textile books on Vietnam. (see Pamela's Vietnam bibliography). He refers to illustrations from"The Community of 54 ethnic groups" frequently thus it is a great advantage to have this book for cross referencing purposes.
Many of the photographs from "Image of 54 Ethnic Groups" are included on the following website. The photos here are small and not as clear is in the publication, but will give some idea of its content and scope.

Thanks very much for this info. Can you share how you managed to get hold of the book?

Many thanks for the web link. I have just added it to the Vietnam portal page on the tribaltextiles.info website as it is a useful summary of the main ethnic groups. Of course, for the Hmong 'Mong' page there is no attempt to define different Hmong groups similarly with the Thai.

Further info about finding above book I forgot to mention: - You can try Bookfinder it is a wider internet search than abe books, also z books on Amazon. Poss also White Lotus Press and other booksellers in Thailand. (I don't know of any in Vietnam itself.)
My copy is the 2000 edition which according to the info in the introduction has extra photos in comparison to the original edition which was first published in 1996 and was reprinted a couple of times before this slightly expanded 2000 edition appeared.
This all means it could still be in print (I don't know if mine is new or second hand it certainly looks quite new.)

I put the title into Google and came up with the Asia Bookroom link as the only bookseller link. I have ordered the book from them but time will tell if they really have it in stock. Fingers crossed! It says - assuming it is in stock - that it is the 2000 edition.

No luck, I am afraid! I have heard from Asia Books that the book - presumably your copy - has gone! Most annoying when they leave the entry on the web site as if in stock. They have 'noted' my interest!

I have emailed the Vietnam Art Books http://www.vietnamartbooks.com/ (out of Canada) to see if they can help as I have got a couple of books on Vietnamese minorities from them including one published by the The Ethnic Cultures Publishing House. I have searched the site but nothing there at present.

All- in addition to the aforementioned book, there are several others which may be available from various sources. I got my copies in Vietnam, several from the bookstore at the Museum of Ethnology in Hanoi, and others at large bookstores there, but they may be available on the web.
Here goes:
Understanding Katu Culture; by Ta Duc; Thuan Hoa Publishing House; Hue 2002 (first volume by the Hue Center for Folk Culture Studies); small format paperback
From the introduction: "For both Vietnamese and guests of other nations, to understand the Katu culture is to explore one of Vietnam's most ancient and special ethnic heritages. Through the lens of the Katu Heritage, a comparative perspective can be gained on other cultures of Vietnam, other groups of Southeast Asia and even the world beyond."

Another is Ethnic Minorities in Vietnam, which I believe is included on Pamela's bibliography. It sorts the groups by language family; has a bibliography in the back; mostly b&w photos, but a glossy section of color in the middle; small format paperback.

I have now received the Vietnam - Image of the Community of 54 Ethnic Groups from www.VietnamArtBooks.com. I must say that they have been very efficient and helpful for the 3 different titles that I have bought via them.

The book is published by Vietnam News Agency. In the preface it says:

Quote:

"In 1996, before the coming of Vietnam News Agency Publishing House (VNA Publishing House), Vietnam News Agency cooperated with the Ethnic Culture Publishing House to publish a pictorial book entitled "Vietnam - Image of a 54-ethnic community". The book has been enthusiastically greeted, and much sought after by both domestical and international readers, and republised to meet demand.

In July 2001, VNA Publishing House went into operation, with pictorial books as one of its main specialities. We have planned a series of 54 pictorial books, each featuring a Vietnamese ethnic group.

For a start, and in response to readers' request, VNA Publishing House now republishes an amended "Vietnam - Image of a 54-ethnic community", with updated pictures and information. We hope that this book will satisfy our dear readers.

VNA Publishing House wi[ll] be very grateful to receive your constructive ideas and support for the preparation work of this book series."

It will be very interesting to watch for the books on the 54 individual ethnic groups - quite a tall order to publish 54 books!

Very good quality and full of colour photos documenting many aspects of Hmong life.
It states that this is to be one volume of a number covering the ethnic groups of Vietnam and their culture. It is however unclear how many volumes there will eventually be, but I very much look forward to the future books in this series if they are as well presented as this.

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